Grapple.



PATENTED 0w. 2, 1906;'

F. S. WILLIAMS.

INVENTOR a THE NORRIS Psi-ms c0, wxsnmnmn, D. e.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE GRAPPLE.

Specification of Letters Patent Patented, Oct. 2, 1906.

Application filed January 20, 1906. Serial No. 296,988.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK S. WILLIAMS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Dalhart, in the county of Hartley and State of Texas, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Grapples, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in well-casing grabs, and pertains particularly to those used in oil-wells.

The object of my invention is to provide a device of this character which can be lowered into a well and gripped on the inside of the well-casing at any point, whereby the same may be readily removed from the cell; also, providing means whereby the device may be effectively released from the casing at any time.

Another object of my invention is to provide a more simple and effective device of this character to accomplish the above results.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved well-casing grab. Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view of Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is an enlarged perspective view of the j aw-expanding wedgeblock.

Referring now to the drawings, 1 repre sents a block which, as shown, is of an oblong form and slightly tapering toward the upper end and forming the four inclined flat faces 2, to which are secured the downwardly-extending gripping-jaws 3, which are of an elongated form and made of spring metal and secured to the block by means of screws 4. The lower ends of said gripping-jaws 3 are provided with outwardly extending enlarged portions 5, forming the biting edges 6 and the beveled edges 7 for guiding the device into the well-casing and causing its more ready descent into the casing, as will be hereinafter more fully described.

The block 1 is provided with a central opening 8 therethrough, and passing through said opening is an operating-rod 9, which is provided with a washer 10 above the block and a washer 11 below, both of which are rigidly secured to the rod by means of pins 12, thus allowing the free rotation of the rod within the block, but preventing a vertical movement of the rod. The lower end of said rod is provided with an elongated screwthreaded portion 13 upon which is screwed a heavy elongated tapering block 14. The said block, as shown, is provided with an enagainst which the jaws rest.

larged opening 15 and ascrew-threaded opening 16, through which screws the lower end of the screw-threaded portion 13 of'the rod 9, the enlarged opening 15 serving as means for receiving and protecting the lower sorew, threaded end of the rod. The said block, as before stated, is of a tapering form and is of a size to rest between the jaws 3 and is pro vided with four smooth tapering faces 17,

The corners of the block 14 are cut away,as shown at 18, and two of the opposite corners are provided: with downwardly-curved guide-arms 19 and 20, which have theirlower ends turned inwardly at 21 and are secured to the block by means of screws 22.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that when the device is to be lowered into the well the guide-arms guide the same into the casing, and the beveled faces of the gripping-jaws engage the sides of the casing and prevent the device from catching on any uneven surface on the casing. When the grab has been lowered to the proper placein the casing, the rod 9 is turned, drawing the block 14 upwardly between the grippingjaws, and the smooth faces of the block as it is being drawn upwardly by the threads of the rod forces the biting edges 6 into the inher face of the casing and engages the lower edge of the coupling, and thus the grab is tightly fastened within the casing. The rod 9 is then moved upwardly and the casing withdrawn from the well. -When it is desired to release the grab, the rod is turned in the opposite direction and the block moved downwardly, and the spring metal of the gripping-jaws will draw the jaws inwardly out of engagement with the casing. In both the tightening and loosening of the device the four arms engaging the flat surface of the block absolutely prevent the same from turning.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A well-casing grab, comprising spring gripping-jaws, a wedging-block between said jaws, and downwardlyextending guidearms carried by said block.

2. A well-casing grab, comprising a block, spring gripping-jaws carried by the said block, a rotatable rod passing through the block but held against vertical movement, and a wedge-block screwed upon the lower end of the rod between said jaws.

A well-casing grab, comprising a block,

spring gripping-jaws carried by said block, a rotatable rod passing through the block but held against vertical movement, a wedge block screwed upon the lower endof the rod between the jaws, and downwardly-extending guide-arms carried by opposite faces of the wedge-block and having inwardly-turned .lower ends.

4. A well-casing grab, comprising an oblong tapering block, spring gripping-jaws carried by the smooth faces of the block and having biting-teeth, on their lower outer edges, a rotatable rod passing through the block but held against vertical movement, the lower end of said rod being screw-threaded, an oblong tapering block screwed upon the lower end of said arm and having the flat faces engaging the inner faces of the aws and the two diagonally opposite corners of said block having downwardly-extending guiding arms.

5. A well-casing grab, comprising an oblong tapering block, spring gripping-jaws carried by the smooth faces of the block and having lower beveled-edges tern iinating in biting-teeth, a rotatable rod passing through the block but held against vertical movement, the lower end of said rod being screw-threaded, an oblong tapering block and an enlarged elongated recess in its lower face and having 

